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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: scale · march · row · stand · snap · track · straw · cue

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. cue — for pool
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. track — to keep track
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. row — a line
  11. stand — to bear
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. row — to paddle
  15. cue — a signal
  16. snap — to click
  17. track — a path
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. track — a song
  20. scale — size or range
  21. march — music
  22. scale — in music
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. straw — a straw man

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com